


why are you not yet feeling guilty?

by 530_and_some_fandoms



Series: oh, but look what you've done to your only son [3]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Agni Kai (Avatar), Gen, Hurt Zuko (Avatar), Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, It's Zuko my dudes, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Ozai (Avatar) is an Asshole, Ozai is the worst honestly, Ozai is trying to get his son killed smh, POV Ozai, POV Third Person, Post-Agni Kai, Zuko (Avatar) Needs a Hug, Zuko's Scar (Avatar), i just think it's neat, v short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 09:55:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29383101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/530_and_some_fandoms/pseuds/530_and_some_fandoms
Summary: "Ozai received a letter nearly a month after he banished his son."
Relationships: Ozai & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: oh, but look what you've done to your only son [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2155800
Comments: 2
Kudos: 29





	why are you not yet feeling guilty?

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of a series. It can be read stand-alone, but it will make more sense with the other parts of the series.

Ozai received a letter nearly a month after he banished his son. 

_ Father, _

  
  


_ I am sorry for my disrespect. I didn’t mean it. Please, I didn’t mean it. I only want to go back home. The Avatar has been gone for 100 years. How will I find him? Please let me come back. I won’t mess up again. _

_ Your Loyal Son, _

_ Zuko _

The characters were messy and there were a few sentences in the middle he couldn’t possibly hope to translate. It seemed his son lived, though barely, assuming the state of the letter because of the fact he was still fighting infection, which Ozai didn’t doubt. 

Ozai scowled. He had hoped infection from the burn would kill his son. If that didn’t work, he provided a boat (it could hardly be called a ship) that should have been taken off the seas 50 years ago. He tried to pick the crew which went on the ship, but Iroh had taken control of that. The crew was entirely made up of military rejects, of course, with no loyalty to the royal family. He could only hope a mutiny would arise and kill his son.

If the crew or the terrible ship didn’t kill him, Ozai assumed the seas would not be too happy for a small boat and hoped that it would sink or get caught in a storm it couldn’t get out of. 

Ozai could have killed Zuko during their Agni Kai, and he wished he had, but Ozai had nobles in that room that might not have approved of his teaching methods. He had to have their loyalty, and sometimes that meant appeasing them when he really did not want to. 

So he didn't kill his son, though it would have saved a lot of trouble, and hoped that something on the sea would do it for him. Sure, that took some satisfaction out of it, but either way the boy would be gone. And if he stuck to the foolish quest of trying to find the Avatar, Ozai might never have to see his foolish son (or brother, for his brother had gone with the banished prince as well) again. 

He felt no guilt for what he had done. Only disappointment that he couldn’t see the death through. 

Ozai held the slip of paper in his hand and set fire to one corner, watching as the paper curled as it burned. 

One final act to rid himself of his son. 

**Author's Note:**

> Actively avoiding schoolwork and then getting it done well at the last second is something of a talent for me. Kinda hate it not going to lie, but at least I got this posted earlier than I thought I would.


End file.
